Navi Mumbai is preparing to inaugurate its inaugural overnight refuge for individuals without homes or in dire circumstances, just in time for Diwali. This shelter can house up to 100 individuals and has received financial support from both the state and central governments. The center will offer essential amenities like bedding, blankets, and medical care services. The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation has intentions to establish additional shelters in the coming times.
There is a Diwali gift awaiting the homeless and the destitute in Navi Mumbai as the civic body is likely to open the doors of its first night shelter by month-end.
The ground-plus-three structure on a 533.47 square metre plot in sector 4, Ghansoli, can accommodate 100 people. About ₹2.33 crore has been spent on its construction.
“This shelter has been financed by the state and the Central government under its Deen Dayal Anodaya Yojna of National Urban Development plan,” Shriram Pawar, deputy municipal commissioner (social welfare), said.
Facility Layout and Amenities at Navi Mumbai’s New Night Shelter
As per the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation’s (NMMC) plan, the ground floor will have a kitchen, a canteen, a room for the physically challenged and a toilet. The first floor will have a hall for men, a service room and a toilet. While the second floor will have a hall for women, a service room and a toilet, the third floor will house four independent rooms for families, a kitchen, a service room, a toilet etc.
Civic officials said the centre with dormitories will be equipped with basic requirements such as mattresses, blankets and drinking water along with primary health facilities.
Work on the shelter began in 2017 and was completed in 2019. After the pandemic struck it was used as a Covid-19 centre, Pawar said.
According to Nitin Kandhari, a dedicated advocate for social causes, the lack of shelter options has compelled numerous individuals to take up residence beneath the overpasses in areas like Belapur, Sanpada, and various other locations. In these areas, they have established makeshift shelters and engage in their daily routines, contributing to unsanitary conditions.
The Ghansoli shelter will provide some relief to those who have no place to go especially during monsoon and bad weather conditions, he said and added that NMMC should plan more such centres.
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